Cotton industry reps go with flow

Bobby Walton updates a group of cotton industry representatives about legislative issues. Walton, the second vice chairman of the American Cotton Shippers Association, was one of about 200 presenters and guests Thursday at the Texas Cotton Association's West Texas Flow/Marketing Meeting.

Cotton doesn’t go from a plant to a fabric overnight, states the philosophy behind a gathering Thursday morning, Sept. 19.

The Texas Cotton Association acknowledged the vast scope of its industry and the connections among aspects such as growth, shipping and production. Some hot topics in the multi-presentation program focused on cotton’s role in the changing world economy.

“It takes all segments of the industry to function properly,” said Gary Chesnutt, president of the association. “The information we gather here will allow us to anticipate problems and plan for a smooth, orderly and timely movement of the West Texas crop.”

The “flow” in the association’s 75th West Texas flow/marketing meeting describes the movement of cotton through its production stages.

Of the more than 200 participants it brought to the Overton Hotel and Conference Center, some came from the other side of the state. A few hailed from as far away as Memphis, Tenn.

Co-host Ray Ragsdale of MemTex Cotton Marketing described a crop grown locally but further-produced nearly everywhere else. He estimated the “trickle-down effect” for area cotton is $8 billion.

“That’s billion with a B,” he said. “In West Texas, cotton is king.”

Steve Verett, executive vice president of Plains Cotton Growers, described the first stage in cotton production — growing it.

Estimates for the 2013 crop range from 2 million to 2.9 million bales, he said.

Yields will likely be slightly behind the 2.9 million harvested in 2012, but significantly ahead of the 1.8 million that followed 2011’s record drought.

Verett recapped cotton’s current crop season. Cool temperatures at planting time gave way to warmer ones a few weeks later, but July rains particularly saved the crop.

“When the rain fell, it fell during the growing season,” he said. “In that growing season we got 80 percent of what we needed, and that’s the reason we have the crop we have today.”

Some ports along the nation’s West Coast can be closed at inconvenient times — sometimes for days at a time — he said. Furthermore, sufficient labor is not always readily available.

“When the supply chain is disrupted that way ... it creates additional burdens to shipping,” he said. “... It’s been very unpredictable over these last 12 months. There’s a lot of turmoil at the ports.”

Friedmann suggested transporters instead utilize ports in the Gulf or East coasts.

In response to an audience question, he described international-transportation routes through the Panama and Suez Canals.

“The Panama Canal is not the biggest issue,” he said. “The issue is whether the demand for cotton will shift, and if the Suez Canal will provide a better option.”

Bobby Walton, second vice chairman of the American Cotton Shippers Association, updated the group about the federal farm bill. The bill is currently in the reconciliation process between the House and Senate versions.

“The next few months will be very interesting, to say the least,” Walton said.